Exploring The Relationship Between SEO and Social Media

March 29, 2016

Exploring The Relationship Between SEO and Social Media

There has always been a strange relationship between social media and SEO. For a long time, there was a large gulf between the two. Google actively maintained that social media followings didn’t directly influence a website’s ranking. However, things are beginning to change.

Your social media presence does have a big effect on your Google ranking. In some cases, the link isn’t direct. However, there are many smaller indirect connections going on. Plus, Google has since revealed that they do take some social signals into account. If it sounds confusing so far, don’t worry. We spoke to an expert search engine optimization agency to find out more. Let’s take a look in closer detail.

A Large Following Will Impact Google Rankings

Quite simply, a large social media following will ultimately boost your rankings. Now, Google doesn’t directly rank websites in order of their social media statistics. However, it takes a variety of signals into account, and social media size is one of them. Moreover, the larger your social following, the stronger your brand. You’ll send more people to your website which is good for Google rankings. Your content will share further and you’ll grow your overall business. This, in turn, is great for Google rankings.

Social Media Increases Your Internal Links

If you have a little background on SEO techniques, you’ll know that inbound links are essential. They help Google determine how authoritative is your website. Many good quality links means a better Google ranking. With social media, you can actively encourage inbound links. The further your content is shared, the more likely it is to pick up inbound links. Use social media to spread your content as far and wide as possible.

Social Channels Now Appear On Google

If a customer searches your company name, they’ll now see your social media channels. They’ll see a stream of your most recent tweets and direct links to your Facebook account. So, what does this mean? It means that you need to portray a professional and consistent presence across these channels. They are now more accessible and transparent than ever.

Sharing Shows Authority

Google now also looks at the activity on your social media profiles. It uses this activity to determine how much authority you hold. In other words, how useful is your information. As you can expect, a social media account with high sharing activity denotes a great deal more authority. Use your social media platforms to encourage sharing and interaction, it will help your content spread farther. If your blog post receives 1,000 shares, Google will infer that your blog is useful and authoritative.

Use Social Media For Local SEO

The SEO world is currently working hard to capitalize on Google’s emphasis on local SEO. Google is now prioritizing local search results. Using aspects like local keywords, you can improve your overall ranking. You can also use your social media accounts to do this. For example, tag your business location when writing updates. You can also use Twitter to promote or cover local events.